Allied to this is an old German story, wie ein künic ísan einer katzen ouge gewan (Pfälz. MS., No. 341, folio, 274, 275). It is also in a MS. in Vienna, see Schlegel's Museum, 4. 416, No. 138. The King has lost one eye, and a wise man offers to replace it with the eye of some animal. The king chooses a cat's eye, which can see both by day and night. The wise man puts it in very skilfully, and is richly rewarded. But now when the king is sitting at table, or wherever he may be, the cat's eye will only peer about the corners or under the benches in search of mice, and will not look at human beings, which makes the king very angry. In Icelandic a similar cat-eyed man is called freskr from fres, he-cat (see Biörn Haldorson for freskr und ófreskr). There is a remarkable instance of putting in other eyes and another heart in the ancient Scottish ballad, Young Tamlane (Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border, 2. 200). When he is delivered from her power the witch says to him, "Had I but known this, I would have taken out thy two grey eyes, and put in two eyes of tree; and I would have taken out thy heart of flesh and put in a heart of stone." This reminds us of Hrugnir's heart of stone, and of the horse's heart which was put into his brother Mokurkalfr, and also of the Devil's putting out the eyes of the goats and replacing them by his own (see God's Animals and the Devil's, No. 148); finally we must mention a counterpart in Wolfram's Wilhelm (1. 146), when Venus cuts out Tibald's heart and puts in that of Arabella. Hans Sachs (2. 4, 148, Kempt. edit.) has a comical tale which bears some resemblance to ours, but is somewhat boorish. A peasant's stomach is being cleansed by the doctor, and is carried off unawares by a raven. The doctor repairs the loss by putting a pig's stomach in his patients' body. Compare Fischart's Geschichtsklitterung (1590), p. 74.
119.—The Seven Swabians.
From a story in Kirchhof's Wendunmut (1. St. 274), and a Meistersong in the MS. which formerly belonged to Arnim (compare the ballad in the Wunderhorn, 2. 445, which had its origin in this). In both of these there are nine Swabians. Lastly, from a Nuremberg chap-book, by Fr. Campe, in which the seven Swabians are portrayed, and their discourse is given in rhyme. Eyering relates the affair with the hare in his Sprichwörter, 2. 227. It runs across the field in front of them, and they present their spear at it. The one in front is called Ragenohrlin, and the last of the seven encourages him to advance, but he answers,
"Ja stündestu he forn als ech,[1]
du würdest nichten also sprech
- ↑
"Did'st thou but stand in front with me,
Be sure thy cry would then not be
